Our English Bay Pale Ale has a smooth, mild flavour brimming with West Coast character and a caramel malt aroma. A true pale ale, it gets its perfect balance from natural carbonation and careful maturing under the watchful eye of our brewmaster.

Beer: Reviews & Ratings

Other reviews here hit the nail on the head: this is a decent enough beer that's just utterly uninteresting. Colour is translucent brown topped by a finger of head that fades to a couple millimetres but persists. Nothing but some mild caramel malt aroma and caramel/molasses/brown sugar flavour--no real sense of balance, no "pop," not enough hop presence of any kind to justify the "West Coast style" designation. Just a caramel-y, fairly bland malty beer. Reminds me a fair bit of Newcastle. (493 characters)

On tap at my local pub, the "best" option in a sea of macro water disguised as beer. I had a few pints, so one would think I could give a detailed account, but this is not a particularly memorable beer. (202 characters)

I bought it at a regional LCBO in Welland, ON, Canada. And I am not a professional or amatuer beer drinker or something. Just beer lover.^^;I think it is like a sweet version of Pale Ale. I've drunk several Pale Ales like Ontario craft ones. They are more bitter than this. This ale is like more drinkable to beginners like me. haha. However, I've found the bitter pale ale more likely has more flavour or something. That means it has little bit weak smell. Well, nice beer to me. (484 characters)

English Bay. If you are in Vancouver this is one of the best view you can get of the sunset. I have the chance to drink here in Montreal.The look of it is really curious. It looks like a Red Amber. You have that brown/red color. Nice carbonation. Maybe have half of a finger of head that goes aways but the rest stays inside your glass.The smell of it, is kind of disappointing. You barely smell something. I really can't tell right now what I smell. it's really difficult to smell any flavour.Now about the taste. Really powerful. Lot's of flavour. Totally different from the smell. Very watery. Surprised me that it is a 5% ABV. Remind of the Richard's Red Amber. You have that touch of chocolate. Roasted grain. Really nice but too watery. I wish it could have been a 6% or 7% ABV. You will have that kick. The flavour is there but you don t have that kick you will enjoy just right after. Nice refreshing beer overallSo overall would I recommend it ? For sure. There is nothing wrong with this beer. Just too watery for my criticism. But really refreshing. Get you hands on this beer. Definitely worth it ! (1,116 characters)

A: Can't really say since I had it straight from the bottle but judging from online photos it seems to be a deep copper color.

S: I get caramel like malts and a nice biscuity quality as well. No hops present really.

T: Almost similar to a very malty amber ale. I really get almost no hops except for a very slight floral presence. Caramel and more biscuit malt than I would have expected. Bitterness is underwhelming. Rather nutty as well.

M: A touch too carbonated for my tastes. A bit of a thin body as well.

O: Not a bad beer but definitely not what I would call a pale ale. More like a ESB with hops and balance removed. Could be a good intro beer. (713 characters)

Got this on tap at a local bar. The aroma has very over powering caramel smell. I could not detect any malt or hops through the caramel. The taste has the same overpowering taste of caramel. Aftertaste lingered forever and I found it very unpleasant. This is not a Pale Ale. After a couple a sips, I could not drink anymore. One of the worst beers I have every tried. (367 characters)

Appearance: This beer poured a one finger head that reduced to a thin layer. It is a copper color with good clarity and vision of slow moving bubbles coming up through the glass. Spotty lacing on the glass as the beer was drank.

Smell: Toasted malts, caramel, a little fruity, and mild hop aroma. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Had a pint on tap at a Calgary pub in the NE. Arrived a nice reddish bronze color with around an inch and a half of off-white head. Subtle aroma was decidedly fruity with a little malt, MacIntosh apple and pear along with a little caramel. Aroma intensity did improve as the beer warmed up. Palate was also on the subdued and mellow side, with some brown bread, brown sugar, and again a lot of apple and pear fruit. Nil citrus that I could discern and the malts were there but decidedly downplayed, the English malt complexity crucial to this style is present but you have to go looking for it. Finish quite crisp and dry, with appropriate earthy hop bitterness and just a little lingering treacle sweetness. Insufficient body. A workmanlike effort that comes off as unfinished or insufficiently conditioned due to all the apple/pear esters trumping the malts on the palate. Decided devoid of all the "west coast character" promised on the label and instead tastes like a "small beer" from across the Atlantic. Granville Island is a lot like Big Rock here in Alberta ... They rarely produce terrible offerings but they do not typically blow anyone's mind either. There's probably a certain comfort in just barely clearing the mediocrity bar. (1,241 characters)

Smell - Bready, with light grassy and grainy aromas mixed in as well. Everything is mild and subdues. Also detected the faintest whiff of fall fruits such as apple and pear.

Taste - Mild, light sprinkling of aforementioned apple and pear as well as grains. Low hop presence and malts aren't really noticeable either. A little bit of sweetness up front and a very mild and understated aftertaste.

Mouthfeel - High carbonation makes it a bit gassy, but feel and flavor as well as thick feel for 5% ABV. Not watery and not chewy or thick but good amount of fullness, i.e. you know you're drinking a beer with some substance.

Overall - Not a bad beer, definitely drinkable and enjoyable would not turn it down if offered, however for the price better beers in the style are usually available. Overall a little better than expected and good drinkability. (1,100 characters)

A - English Bay is deep copper in color with sort of ruddy highlights. Head is packes and cream colored with decent retention.

S - Aroma is malty up front with deep notes of brown sugar. Center has some barely discernable notes of fruit esters. There's just a tiny bit of fruit and leather. Sweet center fades into a finish that just drops into nowhere.

T - English Bay starts off sweetly malty, tasting more like brown sugar than caramel malts. The center gives more of the same brown sugar with hints of molasses. These flavors lead into a finish with barely any hop presence.

O - Overall English bay is straightforward in a way that goes beyond just being liniear. It's basic and doesn't really have a lot to offer. (721 characters)

Look - Pours a clear deep copper amber with a nice small foamy head that doesn't retain well and leaves a bit of spotty lacing.

Smell - Aroma is interesting, the malt is only faintly sweet or musty, the hops are a little subdued but fruity. Not like any other pale ale of any sub-category I've wanted to try. A bit off-putting but the makings are there.

Taste - Taste is flat and muted, everything is keyed way down, even the malt (which is a new one haha). Hops are virtually non-existent.

Mouthfeel - Rests like an apple cider, what the hell? Clingy and cloying. Easy to drink but not much of a pleasure.

Overall - This is probably the worst English style pale ale I have ever had. "West Coast Inspired" ummmm not in the least! (822 characters)

Served out of a bottle at Niagara Food Fest. As mentioned by other users, an unremarkable Pale Ale. Too sweet and nothing that would generally bring me back. HOWEVER...this is one of the very few beers that you can find in Ontario bars and restaurants that's not a Molson or Labatt product. I'm continually frustrated by Ontario establishments who don't see the value in offering quality crafts. So whenever I see this beer, I buy it for myself and for anyone around me. I guess it's my attempt at spreading the craft word and trying to open Ontarians minds a bit. It's a long haul, but maybe eventually we'll see more selection. So don't over think this brew when you see it as the only "craft" available in an Ontario establishment. See it as a marginal step in the right direction. (784 characters)

Appearance: Half a finger of head, to lacing or retention, limited carbonation in the body. Clear brown caramel color.

Smell: Biscuity malt sweetness with caramel note and mineral undertones. Also touches of vanilla and even slight hazelnut. Warming helps it out quite a bit, but it's nothing to write home about.

Taste: A sweet caramel malt permeates the beer, it's almost a bit too much, it then turns to a slight acidic citrus note, and then takes another abrupt tone which is then accented by a touch of fairly generic hops.

Mouthfeel: The carbonation does help out the beer, and the malt aftertaste is nice, but in clings and comes across as sticky. The transitioning is a little awkward as well, and tastes like it has an identity crisis.

Drinkability: This beer isn't especially smooth to drink, but it does sit down well enough and I wouldn't say it's a struggle to get down. The problem is that it's all over the place.

Final Thoughts: This beer is far too sweet for a pale, ale and is lacking in hops. It's a little interesting, but it's all over the place, so I wouldn't want to drink it regularly. It's ok, but there are better offerings from Granville. (1,170 characters)

Smell - Very sweet smelling. Some vanilla notes, combined with some caramel and toffee.

Taste - As expected from the nose, this brew is very sweet. Almost too sweet for my tastes. A big vanilla kick and more caramel. There may be some very light spiced - pepper maybe. Little to no hop bitterness, surprising for an english pale ale.

Mouthfeel - Medium to heavy body. The beer is almost 'sticky' - it sticks to the inside of my lips. So much sweetness. Carbonation is low - virtually non-existent. Unremarkable finish.

taste: crisp, and not hoppy really at all, almost zero dryness factor, an ale by definitioni was impressed by this beer. goes down nicely , reminded me of labatt blue but with double the malt and less corn. tasted like an ale should taste, but didnt linger aroundwhich makes drinking more of it easy. the food pairings for this (as stated on the box) are grilled meat (which is pretty vague). but it mentions a carmel flavour, which i failed to find as anything worth mention. that charectaristic would be subtle, at best.

mouthfeel:not sharp at all, still somewhat carbbed, compared to a more classic ale style.but sort of slick and smooth , with a small zip of the malt and the grain mixing.

overall:i didnt know what to expect, and having bought a 6pack, i was hoping it was decent.this doesnt exactly seem to be a PALE ale as they state ..it seems more to me like a slightly creamy amber..but without the typical hops of most ambers.and heavy on the malts and grains. i was initially impressed by this beer, but the more i drank of it the more it became just a slightly above average craft beer .I dont have anything really bad to say, because it is good. but it leaves a little bit to the imagination, but that can make for an awesome session brew.if ale is your thing, and you like it west coast local. give it a shot.not something id buy frequently, but i can see a specific type of beer fan loving it. (1,682 characters)